


To The Stars

by DC (UnknownUnseenUnheard), UnknownUnseenUnheard



Category: DCU, Impulse (Comics), Treasure Planet (2002), Young Justice (Comics)
Genre: Background DickKori, Bart Allen Centric, Lead by Gay Married Bears because I say so, M/M, Meloni is a badass, Space Pirate Batfam, Treasure Planet AU, Wally is a bisexual disaster, background jayroy, because yeah, which will likely involve Wally by the time I’m done
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-18 09:53:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28741296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownUnseenUnheard/pseuds/DC, https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownUnseenUnheard/pseuds/UnknownUnseenUnheard
Summary: Bart Allen was just minding his own business when he stumbled upon a map leading directly to Kal-El’s Trove, filled with the loot of a Thousand WorldsOr, Treasure Planet AU
Relationships: Bart Allen & Max Crandall, Bart Allen & Meloni Thawne, Bart Allen/Tim Drake, Bart Allen/Tim Drake/Kon-El | Conner Kent
Comments: 17
Kudos: 17
Collections: TimKonBart Secret Santa 2020





	1. The Sphere

**Author's Note:**

  * For [UntoldDepths](https://archiveofourown.org/users/UntoldDepths/gifts).



A/N: Secret Santa gift fic for Oceans on Discord! Hope you enjoy

Yeah yeah, Clawdites are SW, shush -

This became wayyyy longer than intended

Me: A one shot, 5-8 K

This fic: *that bugs bunny no meme*

Published: 01/13/2021

Warnings: Character death, no one major

Featured Character: 

Bart Allen

Supporting: 

Wally

Meloni

Tim

Antagonist: 

Pirates

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**The Sphere**

Ever since he was little, Bart Allen had dreamed.

He would stare up to the skies, to the stars, eyes full of wonder. Could one touch a star? Hold it in their hands? What wonders lay out there, off across the galaxy and the cosmos?

Montressor was just... It was just so small, compared to the rest. There was an entire Galaxy out there to see, far and wide. There had to be more to life than this: a Mining world, on the outskirts of Terran Space, lone and forgotten.

Bart wanted to see the stars. Wanted to reach out, and cup one in his hands.

* * *

It all started when Bart found that damned sphere.

Or, to put it more accurately, it all started when Bart helped an injured stranger who had literally crash landed right before his eyes and wouldn't stop cursing incoherently about evil cyborgs while he helped the person make their way towards his mother's inn. Why? Because, Bart was a good kid, that's why,

Nevermind the fact that his criminal record contradicted that, all Bart had really done was have fun on a solar board, was that so bad?

(The law said yes and that he had endangered countless lives in the process. Carol said no, but Carol had also once hacked into four separate government agencies in an act of ecoterrorism, so her opinion on the matter was not exactly neutral)

"Bartholomew Henry Allen the Second! What is that?" Meloni yelled the second he got in, squinting at the alien Bart had brought home. Like all good sons, Bart was in the habit of breaking down the door and bringing utter chaos in his wake, so this might as well be Friday.

The alien Bart was holding was big, bulky, and bleeding everywhere. At least, Bart thought the person was bleeding. He couldn't quiet tell. If anything, it felt like the guy was leaking water on him, but that may have something to do with the thundering storm outside that had left them both utterly soaked.

"An alien," Bart deadpanned at his mother. Said alien let out a pained grunt, gasps escaping past rubbery lips.

The being kind of looked like a Selkie, if Bart was to hazard a guess as to their species. Considering Selkie's were mythical creatures from those storybooks Bart would speed read in his spare time while in detention, this assessment was... probably off, but still.

Wally was suddenly next to him, helping him haul the stranger.

Ah. Wally West, noted astrophysicist and not a complete and utter failure and let down like Bart was.

He was also Bart's very annoying cousin. Or maybe uncle? Gramps had practically adopted Wally at some point, because Wally's parents had been slightly more shitty than Bart's dad, so his position in the family was never exactly clear.

"My- my chest! Can't- Can't let them have it! Can't let them have what's inside!" the alien was all but snarling, flippers pushing away at them. Large dark eyes were wide and frantic, with a certain desperate edge to them.

"Hey- we're trying to help you!" Wally barked, because Wally. Hey, Bart never said the guy was calm.

"My chest!" the alien said insistently, and Bart briefly wondered if he'd accidentally brought home a Green Lantern, and the chest contained one of their fabled rings. He couldn't think of anything else that would be so important to a clearly dying being.

As soon as the thought hit, Bart let out a terrified squeal, causing Wally to shoot him a sharp look before turning his attention back to the alien.

 _Dying_. Why it hadn't hit him before was beyond Bart, but… The being was clearly dying. The realization alone froze Bart in place, arms falling numbly at his sides, because what would it matter what they did if the being was gonna die anyways?

"Bart? Bart? Listen to- damn it! Meloni! Help me get this guy up on the table! I'm no medical doctor, but I'll see what I can do!"

"My chest! Can't! Can't Let them have my chest!"

Distantly, Bart was aware that someone was screaming, but it all seemed so far away. The world around him seemed to be fading, vision turning dark.

Suddenly, the alien snarled, shoving Wally and Meloni away, their imposing form striding forth, towards where Bart stood frozen. For a moment, Bart thought he was about to be attacked just as the alien passed him.

Slowly, Bart turned his head, watching as the alien reached down, grabbing the chest they'd dropped on the way in. The alien had adamantly refused to leave without it, had even clawed at Bart when he'd tried to pull him away from it.

The alien then collapsed, legs failing them as their hands reached out, dragging the chest towards themselves.

"They'll- they'll be comin' soon! Bats, and the Cyborg! Fiends and devils from the Pitt down beneath!"

Ah. More rambling. Inexplicably, it made Bart relax just a bit.

Clawed hands reached out, punching a code into the buttons on the front of the chest. On that note, the chest had buttons and Bart had just assumed they were a fancy designs. The chest clicked open with a hiss, and the alien reached in, pulling out the source of Bart's problems.

Then, the alien turned and lunged themselves at Bart. Bart responded as any teenager would to that and nearly screamed. A clawed hand gripped it's way onto Bart's shoulder as the alien pulled him down to his level before shoving a clothed object into Bart's hands.

"They'll be coming! Don't- _They can't find it!_ " the alien gasped.

"Who's coming?" Bart asked, eyes wide.

Dark, frantic eyes met Bart's before he was pulled closer, hot breath hitting his ear directly as the alien gave their last words. "The Cyborg! Be... Beware the Cyborg!"

Then, the alien gave out one more choked out gasp and collapsed, eyes rolling into the back of his head, body falling still.

It took Bart several terrifying seconds to realize the stranger was dead.

Tentatively, Bart moved forward, hand hovering above the- the- he couldn't even say it, even in his own mind.

Then, they heard _it_.

The telltale hun of a solar ship was unmistakable, even over the sound of the raging storm outside. Meloni moved before Bart did, fingers pulling down lightly at the blinds and squinting out before she let out a curse.

"Grife!" Meloni swore, turning back to them and quickly making her way towards the bar. "That stranger led pirates right to our door!"

If Bart had been a bit younger, the word 'pirate' might have excited him. Growing up, he couldn't even count how many story books he'd read about famous pirates like Kal-El and his rivalry with Diana of Themyscira.

The look on his mother's face told him all he needed to know, shoving aside that small bit of childlike glee aside.

Then… Burning hot plasma slammed into the door, glowing and vibrant, ripping its way through in a blaze of heat and fire.

"Upstairs!" Wally yelled. Bart scrambled, rising to his feet, the stranger's sphere clutched to his chest. Meloni dove behind the bar even as Wally began to tug Bart away before she rose, pistol in hand, shooting several shots out towards the wall.

What happened next was almost too quick for Bart to follow as they made their escape, Meloni exchanging gunshots with the pirates as their home- their inn and their livelihood- burned to the ground, all because Bart had decided to try and do something right in his life for once.

* * *

Tim Drake had, once upon a time, believed himself to be a good pirate. He was willing to steal and lie and cheat and kill his way to riches, which? Clearly, made him a good pirate, right?

Except, the thing was, Tim was willing to do that… To rich old snobs and trash that had it coming. The second he had noticed that the people escaping from the Inn they'd tracked Tommy Elliot to were a mother, a kid about his age, and what looked like a tired High School teacher, Tim hadn't had the heart to attack and had purposely let them go.

Oh sure, he'd made it look good by opening fire on them, but none of his shots had even come close to hitting his target. Thank fuck Jason hadn't been around to watch and he was stuck back on the ship, because Tim never would have heard the end of it if his brother, observant shit that he was, had been here to squint at him.

On the other hand, Roy was around and while he hadn't actually seen Tim's 'attempts' to capture their targets, he still shot Tim a suspicious look over the whole thing, but thankfully didn't say anything.

On the other hand...

Tim couldn't quite believe what had happened. They'd managed to chase Elliot halfway across the Galaxy, managed to time their shooting down the old shapeshifter so he landed miles away from the nearest city, _and the bastard had still somehow managed to reach the only sign of civilization in the area before they'd caught up to him._

Around them, the ruins of the Manchester Inn smoldered, burning even as the skies thundered above them.

There, laying in the heart of it all, was Elliot himself, prone form splayed across the ground, lifeless and dead. Now that he wasn't breathing, the Clawdite infiltrator could no longer hold his preferred form.

 _Good_. It had been downright creepy, the way Elliot just insisted on shifting into Bruce whenever the other pirate wasn't around. Even Jason taking potshots at him hadn't been enough to stop the behavior because of course it hadn't.

Max strode forward, metal leg clanking away as he did so. Despite his age, the older Pirate was still fit. Hell, the only person Tim knew who was more muscular than Max was Bruce. He and Max were a pair of bears.

A pair of gay married bears, that is. Gay married pirate bears, because they were that badass of a family.

Max kicked Elliot's dead body with his human leg, forcing the corpse onto his back, and squinted down in clear distaste. Around them, different members of their pirate crew were running about left and right, ransacking the ruins.

"Find that map!" Bruce yelled. "It's the key to Kal-El's Trove! Tim! Stop standing around!" Bruce barked out.

Tim jumped. Ah. Right. His habit of standing around and observing things wasn't exactly a useful one. Sure, he noticed more things like that, but that was the only real advantage.

"Right! Sorry da- Bruce." Tim stuttered out before moving out, ignoring the way he could hear Roy snickering at him. At least Demon-brat wasn't here to join in.

"Don't bother!" Max barked out, freezing everyone in place. Reaching down, Max plucked an open chest off the ground, mechanical eye whiling, emenating a red glow. Max snarled, tossing it down before turning his head in the direction a carriage had run off to when they'd started their raid.

The carriage Tim had willingly let go. But, why would he be looking in that direction unle-

Oh. _**Oh fuck him-**_

Max's human eye narrowed in a way his mechanical one could not.

"They took it," Max barked out, baring his teeth, anger and annoyance rolling off the usually calm man.

Tim couldn't blame him. Elliot had led them on a month-long chase after betraying them and stealing Kal-El's Orb, from system to system. The only reason it had gone on so long was because the shapeshifter hadn't dared enter any heavily populated areas, for good reason: He was wanted in way too many worlds to count, more so than the rest of them.

But, now?

Now, a bunch of civilians Tim had willingly let get away had exactly what they'd come for. Civilians that had shot at them, actually, and nearly clipped Bruce in the process

Tim really, _really_ hoped no one had seen that because that would not end well for him, not at all. He didn't even dare look at Roy, because that did not sound like something that would end well for him, at all.

* * *

Bart still wasn't entirely sure what happened. For that matter, he didn't think Wally or his mom knew either. Then again, mom wasn't doing so much thinking at the time as much as stressing out of her mind.

Bart could not exactly blame her. If anything Bart himself was to blame for the whole mess.

Not that anyone else blamed him for it, that is. All Bart had done was try to help a stranger. On that note, Carol had already broken a dozen more laws and casually informed Bart that the man he'd dragged back home was a shapeshifting assassin wanted on over a dozen worlds, which? Fun times.

On another note, Bart couldn't believe he was saying this, but thank god for Wally West. To say Bart didn't get along with his cousin would be an understatement, but, Bart could not deny that Wally had been a godsend so far, from letting them stay with him to supporting his mom.

"The police haven't been able to find anything," Wally said, which Bart knew wasn't true but Wally seemed to think it was, so he stayed quiet about it. The three of them were currently in Wally's study, if it could even be called that. The man practically had his own library, because of course he did.

"Those lowlifes ended up burning the place to the ground, probably to keep the constables from finding anything from the wreckage," Wally continued on, annoyance clear in his voice.

Bart sat a few feet away, on top of one of the shelves. Normally, Wally would yell at him for it, and it spoke to the severity of the situation that he hadn't.

Tommy Elliot's sphere lay in Bart's hands as he twisted the thing around, examining it for every angle. So much trouble, over something so small...

Like the chests it was covered in rains and archaic symbols. Actually... Bart squinted, eyes narrowing.

Wait. Symbols. _Just like the chest._..

"Whoever those Pirates were, they clearly wanted that Sphere," Wally gestured in Bart's general direction as Bart began to fiddle with the device. "It's got so many weird markings on it, too. Even with my decade's worth of time studying various cultures across the cosmos, it would take me years to-,"

Bart twisted, pressed several buttons, and then heard a resounding click as the sphere began to glow in his hands, levitating itself out of his hands.

"Hey!" Wally cried out, surprised. And maybe a bit offended.

Bart couldn't help but shoot Wally a smug look before sticking his tongue out at him. Wally's eyebrow scrunched and Bart didn't bother holding in his snickers.

Then, from the sphere, a giant holographic image formed around them, taking up the space of Wally's study, drawing all of their attentions towards it. It took Bart a moment to realize what, exactly, he was looking at before Wally managed to beat him to it.

"It's a map of the Galaxy!" His cousin announced, looking around at the images in awe. Behind him, Bart noticed his mom squinting in suspicion at the map.

That, and she still had a pistol on her. Bart pretended not to notice how her hand twitched towards it when the map had burst out.

"Wait! That's us, the planet Montressor." Wally pointed. The map seemed to hear him, responding. The images around them swirled, twisted and turned. Expanding, shooting across the cosmos of its own volition. "That's the Magellanic Cloud! The Coral Galaxy? The Cygnus Cross! The Kerian Abyss!" With each change and shift of the map, Wally named them in rapid fire.

Heh. Space nerd.

Then, they saw **it**. There, appearing at the heart of the map, appeared a world Bart had only seen in fairy tales. Golden, like the sphere in Bart's hands, surrounded by twin planetary rings that crossed together, like a massive X. Instantly, Bart sat up, attention finally peaked.

"That- that's... But, it couldn't be-," Wally was muttering, eyes wide and filled with awe.

"That's Treasure Planet!" Bart beat him to it, jumping up in childlike joy, eyes wide with excitement. All those tales, all those stories, came back singing in Bart's head like they had when he was a kid.

All those years ago, before dad had left.

A magical time, when things were alright in the world.

"No!" Wally denied, but Bart could see, from the look in his eyes, that even he was realizing what Bart had readily accepted: _this was real._

"That's Treasure Planet!" Bart insisted.

"Kal-El's Trove? The loot of a thousand worlds?" Wally gasped, eyes wide.

"You know what this means?" Bart said, drawing both Wally and his mother's attention. "It means, all that treasure is just a boat ride away! Think about it!"

This - this was exactly what they needed! What Bart needed to fix things!

"Yes!" Wally replied, now just as excited as Bart was. "It means, whoever brings it back would hold an eternal place among the pantheon of explorers!" Wait, huh? Bart could do nothing more than blink owlishly at his cousin. "They'd be able to experience - ."

_Click._

"Hey, what happened?" Wally cut off as Bart shut down the map. Ignoring him, Bart turned to his mom, a wide smile splayed across his face.

"Mom, this is the answer to all our problems!" Bart told her.

"Bart," Meloni said, and he could see the doubt written plain as day across her face, "There's absolutely no way-"

"Don't you remember all those stories?" Bart interrupted.

Meloni, however, just frowned at him. "That's all they were- Stories!"

"With that treasure, we could rebuild the Manchester Inn a hundred times over!"

"Well, this is- I- Wally, talk some sense into him, please?" Meloni, the complete and utter traitor, turned to Wally for support.

Bart squinted at her and his mom had the gall to stick her tongue out at him.

"Mother is... Evil? Mother is... Incapable of love?" Bart whispered out which earned him an eyeroll.

"You're right, it is insane," Wally finally spoke, and Bart shot his cousin a pleading look, knowing damn well he wouldn't be able to win if both Wally and mom teamed up on him.

… Which was probably how things would end up, because Wally, siding with Bart? He'd see a star go Supernova up front before _that_ ever ended up happening.

"Finally!" Meloni tossed her hands in the air. "A voice of reason!"

"That's why I'm going with him!" Wally proclaimed, and Bart's jaw dropped because _what-?_

"Wallace Rudolph West!"

Grife, mom was breaking out the full names, this could not end well-

"I can even use my savings to finance the expedition!" Wally continued, ignoring her. If Bart's jaw hadn't already dropped, it would have then and there. Wally began to run around the room, drawing books from shelves, seemingly intent on packing and departing right then and there, "I'll commission a ship, hire a Captain and a crew!"

"You- you're not serious?" Meloni gaped at him, and Bart couldn't blame her. He felt like gaping himself.

"All my life, I've been waiting for an opportunity like this!" Wally shoved several knickknacks of a desk into a bag he'd seemingly summoned out of thin air, "And, here it is, right on my face, brought by the most annoying and wonderful cousin a man could ask for!"

"Fuck you too!" Bart said pleasantly, giving Wally a wide smile.

Wally then grinned at him, which momentarily convinced Bart held hit his head and got transported to an alternate universe. Wally then confirmed it by striding up to Bart, reaching up to mess with his hair, before planting a sloppy wet kiss against Bert's forehead.

"Ew!" Bart exclaimed, shoving his cousin away Wally laughed, mirth clear in his voice.

"Enough!" Meloni yelled, making them both jump. "That's it! You're both grounded!"

"Wha- but- _I'm an adult,_ " Wally began to protest.

Meloni raised a single finger, and Wally fell silent. "Zip it! The one time I actually want you to disagree with Bart, you end up fueling his chaotic shenanigans? YOU'RE GROUNDED! Do you hear me? GROUNDED!"

Wally responding by fucking pouting at her.

Ah. Not an alternate universe then. Good. Sense of reality reestablished, Bart took a step forward.

"Mom," he said, drawing her attention. "Look. I... I know that I keep messing everything up and causing messes left and right, and that I keep letting you down."

At that, mom deflated, anger leaving her. "Bart, honey, that's not-" she began.

"But, this is my chance," Bart interrupted. "To make things right. To make it up to you."

Mom stared at him for several moments before letting out a groan, free hand rising up to rub at her temple.

"The pair of you... I swear, you'll be the death of me," Meloni said, before shooting Wally a look. "Alright: When do we depart."

_Holo disk recorder book scratch._

Wait. **What?**

"What?" Wally blinked.

To that, Meloni tapped the gun she had in hand, drawing their attention to it. At their looks of surprise, a single auburn eyebrow raised. "There are literal throat-slashing pirates after that map, did either of you really think I'd let my baby boy face that alone when I never properly taught him how to shoot a gun?"

Bart knew exactly how to shoot a gun, but he wasn't about to admit that out loud because that would end up becoming yet another thing his mom would be disappointed in him about.

"So," Meloni smiled at Wally. "When do we depart?"


	2. Crescentia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bart, Meloni, and Wally make their way to the spaceport

A/N: Annnd here's where Canon diverges because these are different characters than the original story had :P

Published: 1.18.2021

Warnings: Small bug mention

Featured Character:

Bart

Supporting:

Meloni

Tim

Wally

Antagonist: 

Thaddeus Thawne I (background)

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**Crescentia**

To say Bart was excited would be an understatement. He couldn't even count the nights he'd spent gazing up and wishing he could explore the stars, and now?

Now, he was on Crescentia, surrounded on all sides by sailors coming in and out. Montressor itself wasn't much to look at, but it's artificial moon? The crescent-shaped satellite was a hub of intergalactic travel.

Carol and Preston had been so jealous when Bart mentioned he was going to space. He hadn't specified why, of course, in case the messages got intercepted by the mysterious 'Bat' and Cyborg', but he was pretty sure Carol would find out anyways, considering she already knew half the story.

Thoughts of Pirates were the last thing on Bart's mind right now, though. Instead, his eyes looked left and right at the various aliens wandering about. There were peddlers selling charms and food and all sorts of nick racks all around. Beings with multiple arms. A mom carrying a baby inside a pouch that seemed to be just... straight up built into her anatomy, if you could believe it.

The only bad part about this whole trip was that there was this rather annoying and persistent bug that just kept insisting on bothering Bart though the whole thing, regardless of what he did to ward it off.

"Bart! Bart, wait up!"

Ah, there it was again. Bart's bane, most twisted and evil. A thing he knew he would never truly be free of. A curse that would follow him for the rest of his existence, plaguing and prodding and picking at him across the years, never ending, never stopping.

The Lex Luthor to his Kal-El, if you will.

"Bart! I said! _Wait up!"_

Wally all but crashed into Bart, making him oomph under his cousin's weight. Pushing him off, Bart turned to shoot the older men a glare.

Straightening his posture, Wally looked at Bart petulantly, the same way he always did: like Bart was some toddler who needed constant attention to keep him from commiting disasters.

(And, okay, so maybe leaving him alone for too long would usually result in one or two or maybe ten stupid laws broken, but who cared?)

(The law and mom cared, that's who, but that hadn't really stopped Bart get because he tended to ignore laws he saw as stupid and harmless.)

(... Okay, stressing mom out was starting to take its toll, but only for her.)

"We don't want to get separated here," Wally was saying, but Bart wasn't exactly paying attention. "Crescentia is a big place, and we can't miss our departure time. Getting a ship on such short notice cost me a pretty penny! Besides, I think this trip is a great opportunity for the two of us to get along better. I know we haven't always seen eye to eye and-"

Wally's rambling soon became only that- rambles. Bart's attention span could only last for so long, and his cousin had one of those boring drawling voices that never failed to put one to sleep if you listened to it for too long. Eyes drifting off into the distance, Bart hummed to himself, taking in the sights, and wondered where his mom had wandered off to herself.

If there was one thing Bart knew for sure, it was that he had definitely gotten his ADHD tendencies from her. Dear gods, he loved that woman so much.

Wait... What was Bart supposed to be doing again?

Oh, right! Exploring! Humming to himself, a skip in his step, Bart wandered off. To his luck, or against it, depending on how you look at it, he happened to waltz off just as Wally turned his back to him.

It took Wally all of a minute to realize Bart had gone and lost himself in the crowd.

Expression darkening, Wally huffed, crossing his arms. "Fucking typical," Wally mattered, blowing a piece of hair out of his face.

* * *

Meloni Thawne-Allen was not, in fact, lost.

At the current moment, She was slipping into the Terran embassy on Crescentia, wearing a stealth suit she'd personally designed to make herself invisible from cameras and sensors,

It wouldn't work on sentients, which was the trade off. That was fine, Meloni didn't intend to stay long, or be seen at all.

Security in places like this was a joke. The guards would get complacent, lazy: over reliant on technology too easily fooled.

Meloni slipped behind a pillar as a few diplomats passed her, discussing some interplanetary treaty and something about trade. Psh. Politicians.

At least pirates were honest when they robbed you blind. Politicians would smile at you, extend a hand, and try and talk you into thinking it was for your own good.

However, this is not a story of politics, so we will depart from such topics.

As soon as the voices faded, Meloni moved.

It didn't take her long to reach her target. Slipping undetected into the Embassy's Mainframe, guarded only by robot's whose sensors would slide past her as if she did not exist, Meloni quickly began the process of hacking her way in.

She and Bart had hidden from her father for so long. That bastard had taken everything from her, _but he would not have her son._ He would not have him as well. Meloni **refused**.

Monstressor was no-man's land. A forgetable world, among the tapestry of stars. The perfect place to hide away on, to fade from the public eye.

Which is exactly why she'd chosen it, all those years ago. Meloni would have prefered not to go on this trip at all, but those pirates had all but forced her hand.

Besides, money was power, and Kal-El's Trove...

Bart saw it as a way to restore the Manchester Inn, but Meloni could think of far better uses for such a fortune. For better or for worse, she was now in this for the long haul.

* * *

Tim ran a hand through his hair, letting out a sigh. Okay, so, no one had caught onto the fact that he'd willingly let their targets go, which meant Tim was in the clear- _for now._

Better yet, Bruce had all but secured them passage on a voyage that seemed to go hand in hand with their targets, so maybe Tim hadn't fucked everything up?

Either way, the end result was... Tim shopping.

"We need to look like respectable outstanding sailors," Bruce had informed Tim. "Tricking West into letting us be his crew was admittedly easier than I expected, but, we still need them to reach our destination. Not to mention fooling the Royal Navy Captain he managed to commission..."

Bruce had trailed off after that, but even Tim understood the significance.

Only the fact that West wanted them to depart as soon as possible had prevented a background checks from ensnaring them in their web. Even if they had ran one, Babs had them covered, but even she couldn't remotely hack her way into a closed circuit mainframe, and they hadn't been on this rock long enough to find the damned thing.

(Elsewhere, Meloni barely managed to keep herself from sneezing.)

Hands already full with supplies, Tim really, really wished held brought a hovercart with him. As it was, the teenager could not exactly see properly, and, well-

"Oomph!"

"Ahh!"

Crap!

Tim fell, boxes full of clothing and food supplies for Max's Kitchen falling around him.

Had Tim mentioned his stepdad cooked? Because, Max could fucking cook. Maybe as well as Alfred. Okay, sometimes, even better than Alfred, but Tim did not say that, _no siree_.

"Oh Shit. I'm sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going and this is all so new and-." a voice began to babble away a mile a minute.

Tim was currently scrambling to pick up the pieces, and noticed a second set of hands helping. Huh, Whoever they were, they looked human, with freckled sun kissed skin.

Then, the words registered properly, clicking in Tim's head, even as the other boy continued to talk a mile a minute

"No, no, it's fine, I wasn't watching where I was going and- " Tim looked up and froze, for several reasons.

One, the guy held bumped into? Saying he was cute would be an understatement. Freckled skin, amber eyes, dimples, auburn hair? What _wasn't_ to like would be the better question, really.

Two was, well. To be blunt? Tim recognized him. Not in person, of course, but Bruce was nothing if not thorough, and Tim knew _exactly_ who this was.

Bart Allen, the boy Tim Drake had willingly let get away, offered him a hand and a smile, not at all aware he was in the presence of someone who could slit his throat in broad daylight and make it look like an accident.

"My bad! I'm Bart! What's your name?"

Expression not wavering even for a moment, Tim took it, and met the other's smile with his own. "I'm Tim! Nice to meet you."

Then, surprisingly, a bit of red tinged the other boy's cheeks as he rapidly looked away, scooping down to pick up some of the fallen items.

... Oh? The significance was not lost to Tim, even if he might be looking into it a little too closely. Still, that was definitely something he could use to his advantage, if his hunch was correct...

"It's just- I've never been in a place so big like this you know? And, okay, that's kinda a lie because back home is pretty big, but not this kinda big and not people big, you know? Like, there's plenty of space and factories and machines but that's it and here is just so different! And Wally is probably looking for me but he can stuff it because Wally. And I-."

When Bart finally turned to look at him, arms full of supplies, Tim raised a single finger to the other boys's lips. Bart fell silent, mouth falling slightly agape, that beautiful red tinge returning to his cheeks. For a moment, Bart's eyes stayed locked on the digit before looking up, meeting Tim's gaze.

 _Ah_. So, Tim hadn't imagined it.

Okay. Tim could work with this. He could definitely work with this.

Lowering his hard, Tim gave the boy one of the cheesy lopsided smirks he always made fun of Jason for making.

"It's actually my first time on a spaceport myself!" Tim lied. "I'm actually suppose to be getting these supplies over to a ship that just got commissioned! I'm not suppose to tell anyone this, but -,"

Tim made a show of looking around to make sure there weren't any prying ears before leaning forth to mutter in the other boy's ear. The way Bart shivered at that alone wasn't missed by Tim, either.

"I hear we're going to Treasure Planet," Tim whispered, like a secret, one he was deciding to entrust on to Bart and okay, Tim was laying it on a bit thick, but hey, it seemed to be working so-?

Pulling back, Tim gave Bart another wide grin, taking in the other boy's shocked expression. "Isn't that cool? I hear they found a map down on the planet below, if you'll believe it, and I'm not sure if it's true myself but _imagine_ if it is? It's always been my dream, ever since I was a little kid, growing up with all those stories about pirates and treasure and Kal-El's Trove!"

It was true. Tim knew it was True. Bart knew it was true. Bart did not know that Tim knew it was true, which was working to his advantage because the other boy was just plain eating up his words.

Bart gulped, looked around not so subtely at their surroundings, then shot Tim a smirk of his own and fuck, why did Tim's stomach just do a little flutter?

"I think I know a little more about that then you'd think," Bart told him, and Tim? Tim just raised a single eyebrow.

"Oh? well, in that case, you wouldn't mind helping me get these things to the ship, then? My brother was supposed to be helping, but he and his stupid boyfriend ran off on me."

Stupid Jason and stupid Roy. Okay, them ditching Tim to go make out was technically working to his advantage, _but still._ They hadn't known that when they'd ditched him.

"Sure," Bart agreed easily enough. "It's the least I could do after knocking you down! Lead the way."

* * *

Bart couldn't believe his luck.

One, he met a cute guy. Two, said cute guy was maybe (Possibly? Probably?) going on the trip to Treasure Planet. Three? Bart may or may not have made an utter fool of himself because of course he had.

It was a good thing Carol wasn't here because She never would have let it go. That's what best friends were for: loving and terrorizing you all the same.

Still, Tim seemed both nice and cute and Bart was really, really hoping he wasn't straight. Bart still remembered the day he'd asked Preston out, only for Preston to stutter out an embarrassed 'I'm sorry, I'm straight' at him.

They were still friends, of course, but to say things had been a bit awkward after that would be the understatement of the century.

"So, you grew up on Montressor?" Tim asked him as the pair of them made their way towards the docks. Or, rather, as Tim led Bart to the docks. Bart himself was utterly lost and maybe he shouldn't have ditched Wally, but the wanderlust had gotten him and the ship couldn't leave without Bart anyways.

He was the only one who could unlock the map, after all.

"Yeah," Bart nodded. "It's not much to look at, really. The entire planet's full of valuable ore, so practically everyone ends up working the mines at least once in their lifetime."

Bart had seen the inside of one of those mines once and said no thank you. Dark endless space and tunnels that extended for miles into the earth, only lit by the occasional lamp? Yeah, _no_. At least some of caves were illuminated by crystals that glowed in the dark, which had been pretty fucking cool, but still.

Bart prefered open spaces and riding on a Solar Rider as the wind beat against his face, only barely escaping death as he flew through automations designed to extract as much value from the planet as possible.

"Hun," Tim frowned. "You'd think a world full of a valuable resource would be... I don't know, more wealthy?"

Bart had a sudden flashback to Carol all but frothing at the mouth about the evils of Capitalism and shuddered.

"Let's just say the wealth never trinkled down," Bart stated bluntly, before turning away and humming a tune to himself.

"I see," Tim responded, and Bart didn't need to see the other teenager's expression to know he didn't approve. Well, Bart didn't either but tough luck, there was nothing he could do about it. "Well, I think-" Tim began.

Bart didn't get to hear what Tim thought because it was in that moment that they were interrupted by a certain persistence pestilence. Bart should have known. Much like a cockroach, once present, this particular breed of insect never quiet went away.

" **Bartholomew Henry Allen the Second**!"

_On shit oh shit oh shit._

Bart nearly dropped the supplies in his arm, turning his head. Wally was marching straight towards them, expression more furious than Bart had ever seen him. Considering Bart had decided to ditch him while they were on a time table to go explore a brand new world, that... Was not too surprising, really.

"I ask you to do one thing, and you decide to run off the second my back is turned! I have half a mind to ground you for a month!" Wally shouted so loudly that several heads in the crowd turned to stare at them

Bart's expression went from surprised and slightly guilty to defensive in less than a second. Fingers tightening around the box in his hands, Bart glared at his cousin.

"You aren't my dad! You can't tell me what to do!" Bart snapped.

"No, I'm not," Wally readily agreed, "but, you still have to listen to me, especially when we're out there!" Wally's arm shot up, pointing to the stars. "Your mother would never forgive me if I let anything happen to you! Hell, _I_ wouldn't forgive me either!

For a moment, Bart's self righteous anger deflated at the words and the obvious concern he could see on Wally's face. Yeah, he and Wally butted heads more often than not, but they did love each other very much. And, okay, running off maybe hadn't been the best idea, especially when he was trying to be better and-

"You're a bit overdramatic, aren't you?" Tim interrupted. Bart shot the other teen a surprised look, not having expected the other to involve themselves in a family matter, but Tim wasn't looking at him. Instead, his focus was on Wally and Wally alone. Tim's expression was cold and unimpressed, as was his tone. "All he did was go explore, and he seems pretty capable if you ask me. Stop being so stuck up and overbearing about it."

With that, Tim smiled at Wally before walking off without a care, leaving both Bart and his cousin gaping. Then, when he was a few feet away, Tim paused and turned his head to look at Bart.

"You coming? It's fine if you can't, but I really do need to get these supplies to the R.L.S. Legacy or Bruce will have my hide."

That, for whatever reason, made Wally do a double take. Which was fine in Bart's book, annoying his cousin was always fair game. Former guilt already forgotten, Bart turned to Tim.

"Yeah!" Bart said before walking forward, shooting Wally a look as he passed by him. "See you later?"

"I- ." Wally began before burrying his face in his own hands. " _I do not get paid enough for this_..." Wally looked up, only to find Bart and Tim were already a dozen feet away.

"Wait up!" Wally yelled, chasing after them.

If there was one thing this trip was going to test, it was Wally's admittedly short patience, that was for sure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments equal serotonin


	3. Interlude: Kon-El

A/N: Yes, I made Ivy a Kylothian, what about it ?

Published: 01/24/2021

Warnings: None for this one

Featured Character:

Kon-El

Supporting:

None

Antagonist: 

None

* * *

**Chapter 3**

**Interlude: Kon-El**

Dreaming.

Kon-El was dreaming. He was always dreaming, so this wasn't surprising. Kon had been sleeping for decades, for as long as he could remember.

To him, the decades might as well have been hours, for all he was aware. For all that he could be aware.

This world was so old, with technologies lost to time. Technologies that had survived past the fall of a Civilization. Technologies that predated the rise of the Terran Empire, millennia ago. The Mechanism was an ancient, old thing,

Like other old things, it was, frankly, build to fucking last.

Kon-El slumbered on, as he had for decades, locked away in this place. From here, he could _see_. Time and space stretched out before him, past and future.

No. No, that was not an accurate description.

Time itself was such a fluid thing, slipping through the cracks of perceived reality. Locked away, Kon could not 'see' the past or the future, but, rather, possibilities.

Timelines that could have been and timelines that could be. Timelines that were all, in essence, _real_. From here, Kon could poke his sight into other realities, if only for a single, brief moment before it washed away from him again.

That was what Krypton had been constructed to connect to, to link to. A Mechanism that could warp time and space immaterial.

Kon-El was sleeping, until, suddenly, he _wasn't_. And, like all dreams, once his ended, the details slipped away like water because of course they did.

* * *

Conner 'Kon-El' Kent's eyes snapped open with a start as the done flailed for a moment, falling onto his side with an oomph. What? Who? When? What? Where?

As quickly as he'd opened his eyes, Kon forced them close again, the light around him blinding.

Kon took a deep breath, forcing himself to relax. That was a bit hard with his heart beating a mile a minute, but the demi-Kryptonian managed it.

Alright. Take stock of the situation. Currently, Kon was on the ground. Warm earth, below his fingers. He could feel the light of a sun, burning against his overly sensitive skin.

That was another thing, and something for immediate concern.

Kon's skin, his eyes, his every sense, _were currently going haywire_. That was... Well, okay, Kon's senses were better than the ordinary human, because Lex had literally built him like that, but not like this. He'd been built to be superior, not to be paralyzed by his own senses.

Every muscle ached, like he'd just gone five rounds with his dad, one after the other after the other.

A part of Kon wanted to just lay there and sleep some more, but another part of his mind was screaming at him that he'd already done that enough, which was utterly ridiculous. One could never get too much sleep. Sleep was a gift, to be cherished for every moment that one got bask in it.

Turning around in place, Kon placed his palms flat against the ground, pushing himself up. A grunt escaped the clone's lips as his eyes opened once more. Sitting up, ignoring his aching joints, Kon took in his surroundings.

For one thing, he was in a forest. That much was pretty clear, from all the trees and plants and vines. The weird thing was... He both did and didn't recognize this place.

Or, rather, Kon felt like he should know this place, _but he didn't._

Craning his neck to the side, Kon turned.

...

...

Why… Why were there the clear remains of a giant crystal surrounding him? Broken shards practically glowed in the sunlight, and one in the shadows even flowed without, an ethereal light emanating from within it.

Then, something else caught his attention, in the corner of his eye. Lifting up his arm, Kon stared at his own bicep. His muscles were glistening in the sunlight. Or, rather, whatever liquid he was currently soaked in glistened in the sunlight.

Kon let out a shiver, bringing his arms in close to hug himself as shudders ripped through his body.

Where in the hell was he? And why, other than his own name, which Kon thankfully knew, was Kon struggling to remember anything else?

* * *

For the next couple of hours, Kon explored the strange wilderness.

The single most bizzare thing about this wasn't that he'd woken up soaked in some weird substance surrounded by broken crystal shards. No, the absolute weirdest thing about this whole mess was... How utterly quiet the forest was.

Kon's ears were better than humans. Better than most sentient species in the galaxy, at that. There was little they couldn't detect. Kryptonian heritage, and all that.

There were no animals here. None at all. None for miles.

The plants and vegetation were over abundant, growing around him continuously. The trees themselves were… Bizarre. The base of the trees were like any other tree, made of wood. But, the higher up they ascended, the more they changed, becoming. Well. Mushrooms?

…

Kon had, quite literally, woken up in a world made of shrooms.

He'd also passed at least three different rivers while exploring, and, while one of them had fish, that was it.

That was the extent of animal life he could find here. Them, and absolutely nothing else. Not even bugs, crawling around every which corner, which? Was really, _really_ starting to creep him out.

Plants were alive, Kon knew that, but...

There was a stark difference between plants and sentients. Okay, between most plants and other species across the cosmos. You didn't get many plant-like sentient species, other than something extreme like a Kylothian.

Kon hadn't come across a Kylothian since he met Pamela, however, and there weren't exactly many of those to begin with anyways.

Kon paused, fingers curled around a vine, eyes blinking at his own thoughts.

Pamela.

Wait, no... _Ivy_.

She prefered to be called Ivy. Kon had known her, and. And. And-

"Argh!" Kon screamed, letting go of the vine and smashing his face into his hands as he groaned, falling to his knees onto the earth below him. "Why! Can't! I! Remember! Properly!" Kon shouted before slamming a fist into the ground, **hard**.

The earth shattered beneath him, cracking as it sunk in. Kon let out a noise as the rock beneath him sunk.

Around him, the earth continued to crack. One rapture struck a tree off to the side, and Kon watched in horrified wonder as the whole thing came crashing down like some gigantic wooden sky snapper.

Kon knelt there numbly for several moments, staring at the destruction he'd accidentally caused before letting out a breath before rising on shaky knees.

"Alright," Kon said, "It's a good thing Ivy isn't here, or she would have killed me on sight for hurting that innocent tree."

Turning away from the wreckage, Kon continued to wander.

He didn't know where or even when he was, and, until he found out that, all he could really do was explore and-

Kon gasped, steps faltering as a rash of images came flooding into his head. Gripping at his skull, Kon closed his eyes as the dieting onslaught washed over him.

"Who... The hell is Bart Allen?" Kon muttered aloud before shrugging it off. He needed to find out more about this place, and quickly. No time for daydreaming.

With that, Kon continued on, determined to find some answers in this place.


	4. The R.L.S. Legacy

A/N: I mused about who to make Amelia and Arrow for a bit before deciding on this. Needless to say, this shan't be following the plot of the movie

(Because Cole would astral project halfway across the country and cut me down-)

Anyways -

Published: 01/25/2021

Warnings: None here

Featured Character: 

Wally

Bart

Supporting: 

Tim

Meloni

Kori

Dick

Antagonist: 

N/A

* * *

**Chapter 4**

**The R.L.S. Legacy**

First, Bart had gone and gotten himself lost and Wally had ended up having to spend the better part of the day tracking him down. That in itself couldn't be the end to the chaotic storm that was Bart Allen, however, because Bart had also somehow managed to land himself helping out one of the crewmates that had been sent to pick out supplies, because of course he had, so Wally couldn't even be able to yell at him properly without looking like an asshole.

Second, while he had found Bart, Wally hadn't managed to find Meloni yet. Normally, Wally wouldn't worry over Meloni- the only woman he knew that was better at taking care of herself than Meloni had been Donna and, even then, Meloni could give even the Amazonian a good run for her money- but, considering they needed to depart as soon as possible or face steep fines from the Crescentia local government for holding the dock port an extra day, it was starting to become a concern.

And, okay, maybe Wally was a bit of an asshole for being worried about his wallet, but this trip was costing him more than Meloni or Bart knew, even with a sponsorship he'd managed to get from the Terran Empire.

A small sponsorship, considering they'd refused to supply him with an actual crew and Wally had been forced to hire that separately, but they had let Wally commission one of their ships along with a fully bonafide Navy Captain.

Wally walked with the boys as they chatted, content to ignore the adult presence among them. Wally didn't miss the way Bart kept blushing, cheeks tainted a permanent rosy red.

Wally would say he was surprised that Bart was already crushing on the first teenage boy his age that they'd seen since they got here, but that would be a lie.

Then, finally, they reached their destination.

"Here we are!" Tim, as Wally had learned the other boy was called, announced. "The-"

"The R.L.S. Legacy," Wally cut in, startling the two boys as he took a step forward. Before them was the Royal Light Ship itself, floating above the ground, tethered down by a dozen ropes to keep it from floating off.

Around them, the docks were busy, bursting with activity, particularly the ship itself. Tim was hardly the only one bringing in supplies, after all.

On the surface, the Royal Navy ship itself appeared to be built the same way a seafaring ship would be constructed: Made of wood, massive sails, three towering masts- the ship was a thing of beauty.

A sea faring ship, however, couldn't float the way the R.L.S. Legacy did. The sails themselves could ride on solar winds propelled through the Etherium current.

The Etherium itself was made out of breathable air, out in the cosmos of space itself. It was rich in nutrients to, to the point that you could find floating islands in it capable of supporting life.

Sure, there were plenty of space pockets that had no Etherium, but why would anyone bother riding through those when the Etherium currents were so predomanet that one could ride them from one inhabited world to the next?

Wally turned to look at his cousin. "This is our ship, Bart!"

Wally could see the exact fucking moment Bart realized what Wally had only minutes before. Face becoming smug, Bart shot him a superior look.

"So, you're telling me that, while you were busy chasing little old me around, I was actually getting vital supplies for our journey?" Bart smirked at him. "I knew you have a habit of being a freeloader, Wally, but this? Oh man oh man, that's a new low."

Wally squinted at the damned brat and opened his mouth to counter when Tim decided he didn't like the silent game anymore.

"Bart! You didn't tell me you were going on the expedition!" Tim was practically bouncing with excitement, and Bart was eating it up.

Wally blinked once. Then, his eyes narrowed for an entirely different reason. This boy... This boy was setting every one of Wally's cautionary instincts, full stop.

Bart met Tim enthusiasm with his own.

"I wanted it to be a surprise!" Bart said, before his face became... meek? Meek Bart? Ah hell, Wally's cousin really was crushing hard. On a kid he'd just met, too. Bart rubbed the sole of his foot against the ground. "That, and, I wasn't sure if you were going on this actual trip, or another, you know? Didn't wanna excite myself for nothing."

Kill him. Kill him now. If Wally had to put up with months in space of awkward teenage flirting? Kill him. Kill him, **immediately**.

The smile Tim sent Bart in return was soft and fluffy and warm and... set off ten more alarm bells in Wally's head.

Why was this kid setting off so many damned bells? Still, Wally's instincts were usually spot on, so… He'd keep a watch on this one, closely.

Absolutely _no one_ hurt Wally's cousin. Wally couldn't tell yet if that was Tim's aim, but, if it was? Age wouldn't protect the brat from Wally's hands.

"This is great! Now, we can really get to know each other better!" Tim said.

Bart's face became as red as his hair, before a pleased smile overtook his features. "Yeah," he replied, voice soft.

Wally was going to gag, full stop.

"Boys!" Wally turned his head, and blinked in surprise. There, learning over the edge, was Meloni, looking directly at them. Ah. Wally. Wally should not be surprised by this. Out of the three of them, Meloni was probably the only competent one going on this trip, if he was being honest. Meloni waved. "What took you so long?"

And, because Wally had more than one spiteful bone in his body, he twisted around to shoot a blatant look at Bart, then Tim, then back of Meloni.

"Bart discovered puberty!" Wally announced cheerfully.

Wally could tell, without turning, that the only thing that prevented Wally from being hit with the supplies currently in Bart's hands was the younger boy not wanting to make a scene in front of Tim. Huh.

Hey, who knows. If Wally's hunch about Tim was off, maybe he could turn this whole thing around to his use after all. And, by his use, Wally meant annoying his cousin and entertainment on this trip.

* * *

Aboard the deck stood... The single most handsome Felinid Wally had ever laid his eyes on, and, call him a furry, _but it was_ _true_.

Standing tall, the Felinid's form was lean, filling out his red Naval officer's uniform quite nicely. Those thighs looked like they could kill a man, and Wally had to make the conscious effort not to stare.

"Stow those casks forward! Heave together now!" the Felind was ordering, and did Wally mention he had a thing for men in uniform? Did he mention he also had a thing specifically for _catmen_ in uniform?

Because, Wally did and he wasn't ashamed to say it.

Clearly, from what Wally could tell, this man was the Captain of the ship. The Terran government had not only looked Wally up with a ship, they'd tossed a nice twunk in too. How nice of them.

Beside the Felind was Meloni, watching everyone going about their business with critical eyes. She even took the time out of her observations to shoot a subtle look at the Captain before looking back at Wally, wagging her eyebrows at him.

Psh. Unlike Bart, Wally wasn't some blushing virgin. He'd handle this with so much more dignity than his cousin.

(This was a lie. Wally did not know this was a lie. Wally was in denial)

"Good morning, Captain!" Wally greeted as Tim wandered off after getting his supplies from Bart. Luckily, Bart stayed still, which... Okay, that made Wally a bit suspicious, really, but he could work with that. "Everything ship shape?" Wally asked, before blatantly looking the guy up and down.

Hey, Wally figured he'd shoot his shot. If the guy said no, he could move on easily enough. If he said yes, however...

Except, it appeared, the Captain was oblivious because he didn't even notice. Instead, the man smiled at Wally, like a cat that had just caught the canary, pun not intended.

For a single moment, Wally didn't feel like a man, but like _prey_. Those eyes gleamed, catlike pupils narrowing into slits.

"Ship-shape it is, Sir, but I'm not the Captain!" the feline chortled before motioning above them, "The Captain's aloft."

Wait. Huh-? What did he mean, he wasn't the Captain? If not him, then wh-

Then, _she_ appeared.

Leaping down from the top of the ship, bouncing about every which way, the woman even did a bloody summersault mid-air before landing, feet first on the deck and rising to her feet.

That's it. Wally was gonna die on this trip. He could just feel it.

Before him stood what could only be described as a goddess. Orange skin, red flowing hair, green glowing eyes, muscles that military uniform couldn't hide... Yeah, Wally's disaster bisexual ass was going to die on this trip.

The goddess turned to look at the Felind. "Mr. Grayson! I've checked this miserable ship from top to bottom, from stern to stern..." the women strode a few steps forward, making a show of looking about before turning back to smile at the Fe- At 'Mr. Grayson'. "And, as usual, it's spot on. Can you get nothing wrong?"

"You flatter me, Captain," Mr. Grayson took off his hat to salute her. Despite the formal way the two were addressing each other, Wally sensed a... Greater familiarity between the pair of them.

Ah. Best to let go of it now, then, Wally thought to himself.

The goddess stepped away from him and turned, stopping directly infront of Wally. Those luminous green eyes stared at him, widening for a fraction of a second.

A heartbeat passed, and Wally felt as if his entire soul was being analyzed, but, that was crazy, right?

"Ah," the goddess said, before lifting a hand and - did. Did she just poke his nose? She poked Wally's nose. Wha- "Dr. Wallace Rudolph West, I presume?"

"I- uh, Yes - that's- I-" Wally was not fucking stuttering and blushing like a twelve year old in front of their first crush, he was not!

The sounds of Bart and Meloni snickering at him in the background were all but deafening.

"Hello?" the goddess then proceeded to knock on Wally's head, which, of course, caused him to splutter some more. "Can you hear me in there? My name is Captain Koriand'r! Doctor? Are you in there?"

"Yes, I can hear you!" Wally finally batted the hand aside, flushed crimson. Captain Koriand'r smirked at him, backing up a step.

"Excellent!" the Captain exclaimed, pleased. "I see you've met my first Officer, Mr. Grayson, adoptive son of the respectable Lady Selina Kyle!" Captain Koriand'r motioned towards Grayson.

Was it just Wally, or had a few of the crewmates snorted when the Captain had called Selina Kyle 'respectable'?

"Sterling, though, dashing, absolutely wonderful ass-sets, honest, brave, and true," Captain Koriand'r listed off.

Wally squinted. "Did you just say ass-sets?"

The Captain ignored him.

"Please, Kori, I'll blush." Mr. Grayson cut in.

Could. Could Felinids blush?

The Captain turned and shot him a smile. "Oh, come now, Grayson, you know I don't mean a word of it."

The way she looked him up and down after that left little to the imagination. What, exactly, had Wally gotten himself into?

"Not that this banther isn't lovely," Meloni interrupted, complete with her customer service smile, which told Wally, very bluntly, that she was currently dead inside. "But, perhaps we have other matters to discuss? Private matters." Meloni emphasized.

Wally opened his mouth, seconds away from mentioning the map before Meloni stepped on his foot, shooting him a pointed look. Ah, right, not suppose to mention that out lo-

"Oh, you mean, about the map I found?" Bart announced with a smug little grin and not a fuck was to be given.

Sparks literally flew out of the Captain's head. For a moment, Wally thought he'd hallucinated it, until he noticed Mr. Grayson took a step back and Meloni let out a gasp beside him.

Still, even that wasn't enough to distract Wally from the looks several of the crewmates shot their way.

For the first time since he hired them, Wally felt... Unease.

"Mr. West, Ms... Allen and Mr. Allen. A word in my stateroom, please." Captain Koriandr's tone indicated that this was not optional.

* * *

Captain Koriand'r closed the door behind them, quickly locking it with a resounding click. Then, the woman turned, gazing at them all with critical eyes.

For once, Bart actually felt a bit guilty about his actions. In his defense, the only crewmate he'd met so far had been Tim, and Tim had been nice so far.

Bart couldn't say that about the others, considering some of the looks he'd gotten.

Captain Koriand'r turned to look at them, eyes glowing. Wally might have missed what they were dealing with, but Bart himself had not. He'd grown up on stories and fairy tales, of races long lost.

If Captain Koriand'r wasn't a Tamaranean, Bart would sell his left kidney to the black market. Tamaraneans were practically a thing of myth: a species thought lost, who could absorb sunlight and use it to destructive degrees.

If Bart was right, their Captain was literally a walking, talking weapon. A walking, talking, breathing weapon that Bart had clearly _managed to piss off._

Hm. Things were going along nicely so far.

"Mr. Allen," the Captain began, stalking ever slowly towards him. Bart gulped a bit and backed up behind the desk. "No offense meant, but? To muse and blabber about a treasure map in front of this particular crew that Doctor West has decided to grace us with... Is so downright moronic, it borders on the imbecilic."

Bart blinked. "I know you're probably trying to insult me, but that string of words that came out of your mouth sounds too weird for me to really take seriously," Bart responded plainly.

In truth, Bart had understood every word, but the sheer rage he inflicted on others with feigned ignorance when they tried to insult him was just way too good to pass up.

Captain Koriand'r responded to Bart's words with a raised eyebrow, and made a face that clearly showed him that she wasn't buying the bullshit that he was so gracefully offering, but it amused her anyways.

"Hey now," Meloni interrupted, taking a step forward, placing herself firmly between Bart and his aggressor. "If anything, we should be blaming Wally."

"Hey!"

"The crew you hired look like poorly concealed pirates." Meloni pointed out bluntly.

"That's not true!" Bart denied hotly, earning him several looks. Bart fidgeted in place. "Tim seemed nice?" Bart argued.

"Who?" Meloni binked.

"That kid our son has a crush on." Wally as usual, proved himself to have no morals.

Meloni's eyes lit up in a way that Bart knew was going to end with her embarrassing him twelve different ways before the Captain, of all people, came swooping to Bart's rescue.

"Enough. What's done is done," Captain Koriand'r cut in, before turning towards Bart. "Mr. Allen, do you happen to have the map?"

Bart paused, exchanging looks with his family. At the quick nods he got, Bart turned towards the Tameranean, pulling the sphere from his pocket.

"Here."

No sooner had Bart presented the object that it was snatched out of his hands. The Captain twirled it in hand,eyeing in every which way with almost childlike excitement.

Then, seemingly realizing she had an audience, the Captain… was. Was she blushing? Bart couldn't tell if she was blushing or not.

Either way, she turned away from them before Bart could properly gauge her expression, walking towards a cabinet in the back of the room.

"When not in use, this should be kept under lock and Key, If this map really leads to Krypton's bones-"

" _Kori_ ," Mr. Grayson cut in, and Bart had never felt more annoyed at a stranger than he did at that very moment.

The Captain shot a look at them over her shoulder, crimson hair sizzling. Yeah, definitely a Tamaranean. She sent a brief nod towards her officer before turning to face them fully.

"Thank you, Mr. Grayson. Mr. Allen, with all due respect, please watch what words you say around the crew, regardless of teenage infatuation," the Captain said plainly, and Bart was going to murder Wally. He wouldn't even bother making it look like an accident, everyone should know.

Captain Koriand'r strode forth with the poise and composure of a queen, passing them to sit at her desk, resting her chin on her hands.

"Let me make this as blunt as possible for you, Doctor West. Mr. Allen's actions aside, I don't care much for this crew that you've decided to hire. They are... Mr. Grayson, how did I describe them this morning?"

"You called them 'a ludicrous parcel of driveling Troqs, Ma'am." Mr. Grayson offered, and the guy looked about five seconds from bursting into laughter.

It was good to know their lives were in safe hands.

"There you go!" the Captain nodded, pleased. "As Ms. Allen described them, they look like barely concealed pirates! They aren't, of course, because I assume you ran a proper background check, but still!"

Wally said nothing, but, the look on his face was telling. Holy hell, what had Wally gotten them into? Captain Koriand'r didn't seem to notice.

"I doubt they are," Mr. Grayson cut in. "I can't vouch for all of them, but, Bruce is an old family friend." the Felinid interjected.

Brace... Bruce... Where had Bart heard... Oh, Wait! Tim had mentioned Bruce, more than once. It had only been in passing, but still.

The Captain shot Mr. Grayson a sharp look "You hadn't mentioned that before."

"I hadn't seen him among the crew before," Mr. Grayson admitted, shrugging.

Through it all, Bart didn't miss the way his cousin was eyeing the Felinid's muscles. Huh. Wally was a furry. Who knew.

Internally, Bart rubbed his palms together evilly. If Wally wanted to expose Bart's developing crush, Bart could do the same to him. All was fair in love and war, right?

"Anygays," the Captain said, and Bart blinked, because he could have sworn he just heard her say- . "I have a ship to launch! Ms. Allen, Doctor West, I want the two of you with me. Mr. Grayson, please escort Mr. Allen down to the Galley. I don't take freeloaders on my ship, and he will be working for our cook, Mr. Mercury!"

Bart, having phased out to contemplate what evil revenge he'd inflict on his cousin once he got the chance, was wrought back down to the ship as he did a double take.

"Wait, the cook? You want me in a kitchen?" Bart blinked.

And, okay, Bart wasn't the worst in the kitchen. Alternatively, he'd once nearly poisoned Mr. Pierson because he had mixed up what species could eat what. _Twice_.

The way to get on your high school counselor's good side was definitely vaguely concealed poisoning attempts. That had really, _really_ helped Bart's case in juvenile court!

(It had not helped in the slightest, but Cissie had found the whole thing amusing)

Captain Koriand'r gave him a single raised eyebrow in response. "I expect you to do anything Mr. Mercury asks of you, Mr. Allen. We must all do our part: this ship is not some pleasure yacht."

With that, the Captain promptly stood, clapped her hands, and looked around at them with bright eyes. "Chop, chop, then. Time is wasting! The sooner we get a move on, the better!"


	5. Mercury

A/N: Behold, John Sil- cough cough, I mean, Max Mercury

Also, me incorporating elements from the original book that the movie didn't have? More likely than you'd think

Published: 2/18/2021

Warnings: None here

Featured Character:

Max Mercury

Bart Allen

Supporting:

Grayson

Meloni

Antagonist: 

None

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Mercury**

Max Mercury had been hurting Kal-El's trove for as long as he could remember, for more reasons than one. His quest was one that was decades in the making. To Max, it was more than just about the treasure: to him, it was about the answers to be found there.

To him, it was _personal_. Personal in a way that would escape the notice of most, merely because of how unbelievable the reality really was.

The storybooks of today never mentioned old John Silver among the records of those that had worked alongside Kal-El. All anyone ever knew were the names of Kal-El and Diana, and their legendary rivalry across the stars. Anyone else in the story was often forgotten under the scope of such titans.

Still, even if they that hadn't been the case, Max hadn't been stupid then, and he certainly wasn't stupid now.

The cyborg hummed to himself, letting his mind wander as he prepared a meal for his family. Getting flung into the future had been an... Experience and a half, really, but, Max wouldn't have it any other way.

Getting flung to the future was how he had met Bruce, and that? That was a moment Max would never regret, even if the incident had also resulted in Max losing several body parts along the way.

What's an arm and a leg and even an eye, in the face of all of that? True, the entire process left Max looking like an older, more damaged version of Edward Elric, but he firmly believed it would be worth it.

It would be worth it, as long as they reached Krypton.

Then, he heard them. Mechanical eye whirling in it's socket, Max looked up. Through the wood, he could see two different forms approaching. One was clearly the Felinid First Mate, who was easily distinguishable by the higher than species average body temperature.

The other, however...

Max's eye swirled, glowing an eerie red as he suppressed the sudden surge of rage that burned through him.

 _Calm_. Max needed to calm himself. He needed. To remain. Calm.

They hadn't even left the space port, Max reminded himself. Moving now would be asinine. Foolish. They'd have the Terran Armada on their heads faster than one could say the word 'Speedforce'.

Max took a deep breath, releasing it, forcing himself to let go of his anger. The radiation Kal-El's sphere gave off dung to Grayson's compain like a secondary skin, plain and visible to Max's cybernetic eye.

This was the boy Elliot had run off to, who had made off with Max's treasure right when he was about to clasp onto it, in the palm of his hand.

Max could not help being a bit bitter over the whole thing, especially since it had resulted in his current situation of having to pretend to be an honorable citizen of the crown. Blah.

Still, Max would put on a happy face, acts a familiar thing to him. One didn't get as far in the Pirate profession without being able to bluff like the best of them.

* * *

Bart couldn't believe he was being escorted to the galley, of all places. He seriously hoped he didn't kill anyone, which, okay a bit of an exaggeration, but _still_.

"It's my map, and they want me bussin' tables!" Bart couldn't help but whine.

Bart should not have said such things within ear range of his mother, who gave him large doe eyes in response. Despite Captain Koriandr's insistence that mom go with her, Meloni had outright refused, stating that she needed to see her little boy off beforehand.

Bart would die of sheer embarrassment on this trip before they ever reached Treasure Planet. He just knew it. He could feel it, in his bones.

"I'm sorry, sweetie," Meloni simpered at him with a ridiculously sweet voice that told Bart he was fucked twelve different ways from Sunday. "Is there a problem with 'bussin' tables'?"

This was a trick question if Bart ever heard one, considering his mom had all but single handedly ran an inn that doubled as a restaurant.

~~An inn that was no longer around, because of Bart.~~

"Aha, no, it's fine," Bart scratched the back of his head, smiling pleasantly.

Meloni gave him a satisfied nod in return

"Huh," Bart heard Mr. Grayson say. Turning his head, Bart peered at the over his shoulder Felinid. "You know, I genuinely thought I'd have to tell one of you off for disrespecting the Captain. She has a bit of an... Assertive personality."

Meloni gave Mr. Grayson a pleasant smile, batting her eyelashes at the Naval Officer. "You mean, she can occasionally come off as a bitch?"

Bart was glad he hadn't been drinking anything. The snort he let out was not human. Mr. Grayson's dark for bristled for a moment as he shot Meloni a look. Bart's mother blinked owlishly, face so innocent of all sin that Bart almost wanted to fall for the act himself.

Mr. Grayson opened his mouth, a rebuke no doubt on the tongue of the catlike alien, when they heard it: a faint whistling sound, echoing across the galley. Bart almost started humming along as he turned his head.

Hey, it was catchy. Bart would stand by that.

Bart turned away from his companions, peering past the tables into the galley. At the end of the room, he could see a grill, orange fire visible, steam emanating from it. Pots and pans and all sorts of cooking utensils hung from the walls, light shining off of them.

And there, standing in the shadows, was the silhouette of a man, chopping away at what Bert could only assume were vegetables.

Mr. Grayson let out a hiss before taking a step forth, taking the lead. Clearly, he'd decided to leave mom alone... For now.

"Mr. Mercury?" Mr. Grayson called out.

The silhouette looked up, and Bart must have been hallucinating, because he could have sworn one of the man's eyes was a glowing red.

And, okay, glowing eyes weren't that uncommon in the galaxy, but, eyes like that usually care in pairs.

(Beside Bart, he could have sworn that a clicking sound came from his mother. Experience had long since taught Bart not to look her way, or even question it, but he did file it away for later.)

To say the man before them was built out of muscle would be an understatement. The man looked like he could bench press a Gamorean, easily.

"Why, Mr. Grayson, sir!" Mercury said, stepping away from what he was doing, cleaning his hands upon his apron as he took a step towards them, a faint clanking sound emanating from him.

... Wait. Clanking?

Mercury stepped into the light, and Bart couldn't help but let out a gasp.

For one, Mercury was clearly human, For another, the glowing red eye was cybernetic, and looked expensive as hell. Mercury took another step, and Bart could not help but notice that both his right arm and leg were mechanical, whirling about with just the smallest bit of steam escaping from the cybernetic leg.

Mercury froze, and, for a moment, Bart saw what could only be described as pure confusion cross the cyborg's face before he schooled his features into something more neutral.

"And, I see that you've brought such fine and distinguished passengers to my humble abode! A lady, at that, to! Had I known, I would have at the least tucked in my shirt!" Mercury cackled, and proceeded to do just that as he approached them.

Unease pooled in Bart's stomach, and he had to resist the urge to take a step back. Tommy Elliot's last words echoed in Bart's head like a mantra, again and again: _beware the Cyborg._

Elliot himself wasn't a trustworthy source. Bart knew that. Carol had made that abundantly clear. Regardless, the dying words of that man were a thing he'd taken to heart.

All of this, of course, could be a coincidence, but, if life had taught Bart anything, it was that real coincidences were rare and far between.

Meloni took a step forward, putting herself between Bart and Mercury. Smiling, she extended a hand out towards him. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Mercury. My name is Meloni Allen! I'm helping to finance this wonderful expedition!"

Considering all their life's savings had burned with the Manchester Inn because mom didn't believe in banks, that was a lie, but Bart was not about to call his own mother out.

Mercury let out a jovial sound, taking Meloni's hand in his own flesh and blood one, lifting it up to his face to place a soft kiss there.

... Was. Was this bastard half robot man really flirting with his mother? Bart would throw hands.

"To think, such beauty would grace my humble galley! Truly an honor!" Mercury said, a wide grin adorned on his face.

Meloni took her hand back, smiling back. "I'm afraid I'm taken," Meloni informed him, lifting her left hand to show off the ring there.

Bant bristled. Despite dad leaving then almost ten years ago without so much as a goodbye, mom had never given up on him. It was a topic they just never discussed. Bart knew damn well he'd start yelling if they did, and getting into fights with his mother while she just bit her lip and looked at him sadly were not productive.

Mercury chuckled, before lifting his own left hand up, displaying two shining rings there. "Just a coincidence: So am I! I won't tell the Mister if you won't?"

... The Mister? Despite himself, Bart couldn't help the surge of instinctive trust he felt surge through him at being in the presence of an older, married gay.

Meloni's eyes lit. Then, turning, she motioned towards him. "This is my son, Bart Allen. He'll be accompanying us on the journey, and it's his first time to space!"

It took less for a second to register what was left unsaid: this was Bart's first time to space, but not his mother's, which was news to Bart. When had she-

"Bartholomew!"

Suddenly, Mercury was infront of Bart, extending a hand out. His mechanical hand, that was, all five fingers still in their knife format that he'd been using earlier.

Bart responded by squinting at said hand before shooting the cyborg a distrustful look.

Mercury himself looked amused, and Bart could practically see the joke threatening to escape the older man's lips.

"Aw, now now kiddo, don't be put off by this junk of hardware," Mercury retracted the hand with a chuckle, taking a step back towards his kitchen. Humming to himself, the cyborg pulled what looked like mini squids from a can, quickly chopping away at them with a blade retracted from his mechanical hand.

... Was, Was that even sanitary? The blades looked clean, but Bart couldn't help but wonder.

What followed was a series of moves that took Bart a bit to follow, including a flamethrower of all things, coming out of said mechanical hand to blast the food with searing heat. "These gears and wires and cogs took some getting used to, I'll admit, but they do come mighty useful from time to time!"

Mercury quickly produced a pair of bowls, sniffing at the soup he'd just created and smiling to himself before turning to Bart and his mom. Handing them both a bowl in rapid succession, Mercury gave them a wide grin.

"Now, please, try some of my famous bozabeast stew! It's an old family recipe!"

Bart took his bowl and scanned at the contents, taking a sniff of his own, eyebrows rising against his will. Okay, it did smell pretty good, Bart would admit.

Meloni, on the other hand, took hers with a smile, using the spoon Mercury had proved to quickly bring a bit up to her lips for a taste.

Meloni's face scrunched. "Hm. Tangy, yet robust. Could use a few spices," she judged.

"Oh?" Mercury raised his single remaining eyebrow. "What would you suggest?"

Meloni beamed, and the pair of them quickly began to discuss different cooking methods a mile a minute. Bart would have paid more attention to them, but, well.

They might as well have been speaking Greek, for all Bart knew, really.

Bart turned to shoot a look, who appeared bemused by the whole thing. "Are you sure Mom wouldn't work better here than me?"

Grayson responded by sending Bart an unamused look, whiskers bristling. "I'm sure Mr. Mercury here can think of plenty of tasks to keep you occupied, young man."

Bart face scrunched in unmasked annoyance before he looked back down to his own stew. Eh, fuck its might as well, Considering mom liked it, Bart doubted there was anything really wrong with it. And, okay, Bart was hungry, sue him. He was a growing boy.

Bart picked up the spoon, intent on doing just that, when... The spoon… Levitated? Bart blinked, watching as his spoon tranformed into a straw and... Sucked up his stew?! What in the name of all that was holy-

"Dox! You chaotic little creature of mischief! That's where you were hiding?" Mercury's voice cut in as the straw transformed into a... small floating pink blob, which began to giggle at Bart.

Bart had been robbed by a sentient blob. He had now seen everything.

The small pink creature let out another giggle before a burp escaped it's lips. Despite himself, Bart couldn't help the way his own lips twitched.

True, his food had just been stolen, but Dox was kind of cute.

Dox let out a satisfied hum before shooting Bart a smile, dashing forward to press an affectionate kiss against Bart's cheek.

Okay, scratch kinda cute. Dox was outright fucking adorable, and Bart would die for him. Er. Her. They?

"What are they?" Bart asked, unable to help the smile that splayed across his lips as he extended a hand out. Dox cooed at him, letting Bart pet him, and fuck if that wasn't also adorable on main.

Dox shifted again, and Bart found himself staring at a mirror image of himself. The mincture Bart let out a giggle before opening his mouth, "What are they? Hehe, What are they, what are they!"

_Holy shit._

"They're a Morph!" Mercury answered. "I rescued the little shapeshifter off Proteus III!"

At his voice, Dox dashed away from Bart, moving towards the cook. Bart could not help but pout at that, and watched as the little creature cooed and rubbed themselves affectionately against Mercury's cheek.

... Alright. Trust level raised again. Anyone that could make such a pure creature like Dox happy couldn't be all bad.

"Little guy took a shine to me," Mercury said, eyes on Dox. Mercury extended his human finger, rubbing it againts Dox's cheek. Dox cooed again, lavashing in the attention. "They've been following me around ever since."

Just then, Bart heard the ticking of a bell, echoing across the ship.

Mr. Grayson tilted his head, cat ears twitching. "We're about to get underway," the Felinid announced, before turning to look at Meloni. "Ms. Allen, would you like to see the launch? The Captain did wish to speak to you further."

Meloni sipped at her stew. "Oh, I'm sure she did. There's much we have to discuss."

Bart shot his mom a confused look at that. Annoyingly, Bart was ignored. Instead of looking at him, Meloni's attention shifted to observe Mercury with keen eyes.

Bart fidgeted a bit at that. Dox had made Bart forget the initial reason he distrusted Mercury, but it appeared mom had not.

Mr. Grayson raised an eyebrow at Meloni. Despite his earlier wording, it was clear that taking her to see the launch was not a suggestion. Meloni sighed, setting down her mostly empty bowl before turning to Bart, shooting him a smile.

"Take care, sweetie," Meloni said, before pressing a soft kiss to his cheek.

Behind them, Mercury froze, squinting at them. Bart could all but see the gears turning in the man's head, putting two and two together, and sighed, knowing better then to try and escape his fate.

"Mr. Allen will be staying here, Mr. Mercury, in your care," Mr. Grayson announced, and Bart heard the man cough out, having chosen that moment to swallow down some stew.

Which. Was now on the floor. Which Bart would more than likely end up cleaning because of course he would, because that was just his luck on this trip.

"Now, see here," Mercury began, clearly taken back at the idea of Bart working for him as Bart was, "but-"

"Captain's orders!" Mr. Grayson barked. Wait, no- Felinids didn't bark, and accusing them of doing so had caused interplanetary wars before. Meowed? Growled? "See to it that our new Cabin boy is kept busy. Children his age need to be kept occupied, especially on a ship like this."

Bart was going to sneak up on Grayson in his sleep and shave off his fur. And maybe the tail. Bart couldn't see said tail, but he knew Grayson had to have one- all Felinids did.

"Wha- but - you can't- the kid is just - ." Mercury began to blabber. Normally, this would be the moment Bart would join in, but he did _not_ want to get on his mom's bad side.

Anyone who really knew Bart's mom did not want to get on her bad side. Meloni Allen was practically a living, breathing force of nature.

Mr. Grayson didn't bother with a response. Instead, he led Meloni back out of the galley, not even bothering to turn his back to them.

Mercury let out a sigh, before turning to look at Bart.

Once again, Bart's apprehension about the whole thing started to get to him, and he took a step back.

"So," Mercury said, "the Captain's put you with me?"

"Looks like," Bart took a step back, putting a bit of distance between himself and the cyborg.

At least Mercury didn't have a bat symbol embedded on him, from what Bart could see. If he had, Wally would have literally hired the pirates that had burned down the Manchester Inn to be their crew, which would just be their luck.

Well, If Mercury was the pirate Elliot had warned Bart about, of course. He probably wasn't, but Bart wasn't about to take his chances.

Bart turned and blinked, eyes landing on a barrel in the side of the room. Were these... Bart walked up to it, pulling a fruit out. Bart squinted, realizing they were exactly what he thought they were.

"I suppose you're with me, then," Mercury broke the silence, and Bart didn't miss how the jovial tone he'd had before seemed to have all but vanished with Grayson and Mom.

Bart twisted the fruit in hand as he began to walk around the room. "You know, these purps you've got here are kind of familiar. Just like the one's back home, on Montressor. Have you ever been there?"

Yes, Bart was laying it on fucking thick, what about it?

"Hm? Montressor?" Mercury said, back to Bart as he began to chop at more vegetables. "I can't say that I have!"

Bart paused.

"You've never been to the planet down below?" Bart pointed out bluntly.

Mercury shot him a bemused look over his shoulder. "Whatever for? I'm a Spacer, kiddo. Haven't touched down on an actual planet outside of a spaceport in years."

Okay, that was fair, but still. Bart nodded along, and kept on walking about. Then, Bart decided to do something stupid.

Something... Impulsive, really.

"You know, just before we left, a friend of mine was telling me about how he missed his cyborg friend," Bart said.

"On?" Mercury said, hand turning into a literal chainsaw. Holy heck, that must be useful. Knives, fire, a chainsaw? What else cou- Okay, Bart. Can't let the cool cyborg arm distract you. Nope. Back on topic.

"Yeah," Bart said, before pulling himself up onto an empty counter and biting into the fruit. Hey, he was hungry, and Dox had stolen Bart's food, even if Dox was an adorable little creature that Bart would kill for, despite having just met him. "His name was Tommy. Tommy Elliot." Bart said, eyes carefully watching Mercury.

Mercury didn't even blink. He just kept on working, before lifting up a large bowl in both hands and turned towards Bart. "Elliot? Hm, Can't say I've heard of him, really. Probably looking for a different cyborg: I'm hardly the only disabled gent that's managed to get himself some prosthetics."

On, _ouch_. If Mercury's goal was to make Bart feel guilty about his line of questioning it was working.

Mercury set the bowl next to Bart on his left before shooting Bart a smile. The pair of them heard Mr. Grayson's voice, thundering off in the distance, telling the crew to prepare their departure.

Mercury chuckled, before motioning towards the exit. "Off with you, kiddo. You're not going to wanna miss your first ship departure, I can tell you that."

Bart eyed him with unmasked suspicion, but couldn't exactly argue the words. Bart really did want to see the launch, Mercury wasn't wrong about that. Still...

Beside Mercury, Dox floated around, chirping, distracting Bart. Hm. Alright. Bart didn't trust Mercury, at all, but it wasn't like Bart had any proof the guy was up to no good, other than a few malplaced assumptions that really made Bart sound like an asshole the more he thought about them.

"Alright," Bart said aloud, before letting himself slide off the countertop. Bart stood, stretching a bit before making his way to the exit. "Thanks! See you later."

* * *

Once the boy was gone, Max let out a deep breath.

It had taken every once of restraint not to react when Bart had mentioned Tommy Elliot. Elliot was somewhat of a sorespote, for more reason than one.

That... Deranged shapeshifter had had an obsession with Bruce. The straw that had finally broken the camel's back had been the day Max had gone to bed... Only for Elliot, morphed into Bruce, to meet him there.

They hadn't done anything, thankfully, because Max had caught on rather quickly with his cybernetic eye, but the entire incident had made Max's skin crawl. That wasn't even mentioning how much worse things got when Elliot had run off with the Sphere.

Dox, sensing Max's unease, began to bump against him, chirping. Max reached out, scratching the little creature with his finger. "Best we keep an eye on that one, Dox," Max said. "And his mother, too."

Max hadn't been able to see Meloni with his mechanical eye. At least, not at first. Normally, Max would chalk it up to chance, but that woman... She made him feel unease, in a way he hadn't felt in a long time.

The boy Max was sure he could handle. But, the mother? That, there? That, he was apprehensive about. She's nearly taken Bruce's head off when they'd raided the Inn, if Max wasn't mistaken. That sort of aim took practice, years of it.

Meloni Allen was a threat to their goals, probably the biggest one on this ship, nevermind the Naval Captain and her first mate. A threat Max would have to watch very closely.

Only time would tell, Max supposed. Hm. Time. Just the thing he seemed to be running out of these days. Oh, how time just flew on by...


	6. Take Off

A/N: id estimate this is either halfway or a third through. Can't tell tbh-

One to two more chapters before planet fall :P

Published: 2/20/2020

Warnings: None

Featured Character:

Bart Allen

Supporting:

Tim

Jason

Roy

Antagonist: 

Tim (loosely)

* * *

**Chapter 6**

**Take Off**

The ship launch, was, to say the least? Phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal. The sails, glowing in the sun. The wind, beating around them in waves. The floating sensation Bart had felt just before the artificial gravity generators had finally kicked in properly.

That, and, the cherry on top that made this a memory to truly remember? Bart had arrived on the deck just in time to see Wally get put on his ass because he hadn't managed to brace himself properly, which was a win in his book, as far as he was concerned.

Which? Bonus. Fucking bonus. Bart wished he'd gotten it on video. Where had Bart left his holophone, anyways? Carol had insisted that he keep in touch, because Carol.

If it wasn't for the fact that Bart was gay as a unicorn blasting rainbows from their ass while galloping away, Burt would have probably married that girl. And, okay, they were definitely too young to be seriously considering that, but the thought still remained.

The realization that he _did not_ want to kiss Carol was one of the things that had helped Bart realized he was gay. (And, okay, realizing that he _did_ want to kiss Preston had also ended up helping things along in that regard.)

Bart loved Carol and would die for her. She was his best friend, to the point where she'd promised she'd be the Best Man at Bart's wedding, after Bart had agreed to be the Maid of Honor at hers.

"Hey! Bart!" a voice called, drawing him out of his musings.

Bart turned, and couldn't help the grin that crossed his face.

"Tim!" Bart greeted back, moving towards the other teenager.

Tim himself, like most of the crew, was running around performing errands on the ship. There was way more to running a Light Ship than what Bart had known, apparently. There were crewmates running around left and right, scaling the scaffolding, checking rope bends, etc.

With nothing better to do, Bart began to make his way across towards his crush, when a towering mass of muscle appeared in his path, halting his way. Bart nearly fell over before glancing up.

Before him stood a gray skinned Reptilian alien with four muscular arms, biceps as large as Bart's chest. A Densadron, if Bart wasn't mistaken.

Bart just had one question, and one question only: Why. Why were their holes literally built into the guys forearms? What sort of biological need led to evolution deciding that this particular species needed holes built into their forearms?

Said arms were currently crossed across the alien's burly chest.

Bart, never having been this physically close to a Densadron before, opened his mouth without really thinking, "Why are their holes in your forearms?"

"So," the alien spoke, voice gruff and deep. "You're the punk who's been making mooney eyes at my baby bro-." the Densadran froze, having registered what Bart just said. Large eyes blinked down at Bart, the alien's expression incredulous. "What in the fuck did you just ask me?"

Bart spluttered. Wait, what? Burt didn't know any Desandron personally, and he knew for a fact that he hadn't been hitting on one. Hell, the most he'd seen of them was at his mother's Inn, since the species tended to keep to themselves.

"Jason Peter Todd!" Tim appeared next to the Desandron, glaring at him. "Stop trying to scare away cute boys that interact with me! I can handle myself!"

Bart froze, several thoughts coursing through his head.

For one, this was Jason? This was the brother Tim had been bitching and complaining about back on Crescentia? Bart could only assume the pair of them were adopted, because that was the only way he could wrap his mind around the pair of them being siblings.

... Bart could also only assume that it hadn't been an official adoption. Most courts and Planets didn't recognize interspecies adoptions. Was it messed up? Totally. Was it the law? Unfortunately.

"Did you hear what this little shit said about my arms?" Jason whined, motioning at Bart wildly with one of his hands.

Tim responded to this by proving that they were in fact siblings by poking a finger through one of Jason's aforementioned forearm holes. Jason yelped, moving the arm away before reaching out with another to smack his brother.

Tim laughed and dodged the blow with practiced ease, ducking under the arm before practically tackling Bart. Bart let out a surprised grunt before he felt himself get dragged away.

"Come on," Tim said, "You can't miss waving goodbye to the planet! Or, heck, the view from space!"

"Hey!" Jason cried, turning to reach out for them.

Tim responded by sticking his tongue out.

Despite all the bluster, Jason didn't move to pursue them as Tim proceeded to drag Bart off towards the stern of the ship.

This ride just got a bit more interesting, especially because Tim had referred to Bart as 'a cute boy', so maybe Bart's chances weren't null after all, and he hadn't accidentally started crushing over another straight boy all over again like last time.

Despite his earlier apprehension with Mercury, Bart was really starting to have a good feeling about this trip!

* * *

Jason frowned as he watched his little brother drag the Montressor boy away, crossing his muscular arms before his chest.

Just like Bart had guessed, Jason and Tim were both adopted. Bruce Wayne just wasn't a man who could help himself in that regard when he came across an orphaned child, in this, or any reality.

And, okay, a scuffle between them and another Pirate gang had technically made Tim an orphan himself, but Bruce had responded by giving the kid a new home. Tim himself hadn't really seemed to mind, which really brought into question Jack Drake's parenting methods, but that was another discussion entirely.

In the end, Tim had been happy with his new family, and that, Jason supposed, was what had truly mattered.

A new family of throat slicing pirates, but details.

And, now... If this gig played out the way they wanted it to, they'd be set. Set for life. A world full of treasure and gold and jewels, just waiting for them.

That wasn't what had Jason frowning, however, or what was currently making him uncomfortable.

Beside him, Roy appeared. Jason shot a glance at his fellow crewmate. Roy, like Tim, was a human. Pale freckled skin, red hair, tattoos running up his arms, Roy looked like a more feral version of that Doctor financing this whole expedition.

Well. Other than the fact that Roy was awesome, and Doctor West was a dweeb who'd gotten knocked on his ass the second they'd taken off. Jason had so gotten that on holocam.

Roy shot Jason a look before his eyes focused on Tim and Bart in the background.

"Tim's in over his head," Jason admitted without preamble, because it was true.

Roy raised an eyebrow. "All he's doing is fishing for information, isn't he?"

"Yes," Jason said, "And, _he's in over his head._ "

Roy raised an eyebrow. "I think you might be underestimating your brother a bit, Jaybird. You should give him just a little more credit here."

Then, Jason heard a crunch. Blinking, the Densadron turned to store at his human boyfriend. Jason blinked again. Twice more, for good measure.

"... Are you fucking eating popcorn."

"..."

"..."

"Perhaps?

"..."

"..."

"Roy, I'm going to kill you."

* * *

Bart let Tim lead him to the side of the ship the pair of them watched together as Montressor grew smaller and smaller in the distance, slowly shifting from a massive world dominating the skies, to the size of a small sport's ball.

Tim had been right: this was a sight one had to see with their own eyes.

Around them, the Etherium churned as the R.L.S. Legacy rode across it. Bart was seeing colors he'd never even imagined before, clouds and stars echoing out around them.

Space... Space was beautiful. It was a wonder to behold, and Bart? Bart couldn't keep himself from gaping at everything, really. How could he, with a sight like this?

Beside him, Bart felt Tim take his hand in his own, fingers curling into Bart's as the pair of them gazed outwards.

Bart froze couldn't help the way he froze at that , heart thudding almost painfully against his chest. Not from fright, but... Anticipation? Yearning? Possibility?

"I'm sorry about my brother," Tim said. "All of us... Bruce adopted us, you see. My Jay, Cass, Damian, Duke." Tim listed off, and Bart blinked because , just how many siblings of various species were going to end up threatening Bart over interacting with their baby brother? "Jason's a bit much, I know. It's mostly because Jay's trying to make up for the times he tried to kill me when we were younger."

"Ah, that makes sen-." Bart nodded, before Tim's words finally caught up to him. "Wait, what?"

Tim grimaced before shooting a not so subtle look behind them, followed by an eyeroll. Bart followed his gaze, and saw Jason wrestling and laughing with a red headed human which was not Wally, and... Popcorn, all over the floor?

Tim looked back at Bart, squeezing their interlocked fingers, drawing Bart's attention back to him. "It's complicated. Let's just say Jason's blood parents weren't the best, so please, don't judge him too harshly. He tries to act all big and tough, but, really," Tim locked back to his brother, who had finally managed to catch the redhead in his arms and was giving him a nudgy. "He's just a big softy, who wants to watch out for me."

Bart stayed silent for a bit, not saying a word. Then, finally, he spoke. "So... I'm a cute boy now?"

Tim spluttered, and Bart was rewarded with the delightful image of the other boy turning beat red. Tim wouldn't meet his gaze, eyes instead fixed off into the distance.

After several moments passed, Tim finally spoke. "... Maybe?" the other boy admitted, and Bart's heart? It leaped and soared.

Then, Bart saw something he was pretty damn familiar with light in Tim's eyes: panic, and fear. And that? That right there made Bart's heart clench, painfully.

"If that bothers you, I'm sorry!" Tim apologized rapidly, and attempted to let go of Bart's hand. Keyword here being 'attempted', because Bart tightened his grip, refusing to let go.

Tim shot him an uncertain look, and Bart?

On instinct, Bart lifted their interlaced fingers up to his mouth, pressing a kiss to them. Bart hadn't thought Tim could go any redder, but he had been wrong. He could see the flush crawling down to Tim's chest, but his clothes prevented Burt from seeing just how far down it went.

The thought alone made Bart want to blush to. Still, determined, Bart met Tim's gaze with his own. "No, I don't have a problem with that at all. And... I think I'd like to get to know you better, if that's okay?"

Tim's mouth fell open in the cutest little gasp before he looked away, a happy smile splaying across the other teen's lips.

Bart couldn't help but smile too, turning to gaze at the horizon.

Then, Bart's brain successfully managed to connect a few dots that Tim hadn't directly mentioned, but were obvious when you put the pieces together.

"No offense, but, I think I met your stepdad down in the galley, and he was kind of a prick?" Bart commented.

A moment stretched out between them.

"Wait, what?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

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